Creative problem solving with marginalized populations: reclaiming lost prizes through in-the-trenches interventions

This article describes several initiatives in which Creative Problem Solving, in combination with career exploration and mentoring, has been used successfully to identify and develop the talents of 'at-risk' populations. During the past decade, the Lost Prizes project helped turn around the lives of talented but troubled high-school dropouts, Northern Lights encouraged productivity in disenfranchised Aboriginal teens, and Second Chance reduced recidivism among Native Canadian inmates. Currently, various mentoring programs are providing support to vulnerable inner-city young people at risk for alienation, school failure, and gang involvement.